title: Residents' knowledge of standard drink equivalents: implications for screening and brief intervention for at-risk alcohol use.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Screening and brief intervention for reducing alcohol consumption has been demonstrated to be effective in various medical settings. The NIAAA has recommended that physicians screen all patients for at-risk and problem drinking. Often, screening is based on the concept of a "standard drink."
  
  
  METHODS
  We administered a survey to residents (N=270) in order to assess their knowledge of standard drink equivalents and quantities of alcohol in various sizes of bottles.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Although 89% of the responders stated that they had previously learned about screening for at-risk alcohol use, the majority did not know basic facts about standard drink equivalents.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Many trainees are not familiar with typical standard drink equivalents. This can have a significant impact on the screening of patients for problem drinking using screening tools that rely on standard drink equivalents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Welsh
authors.forename: Katherine
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Earley
authors.forename: Janine
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Delahanty
authors.forename: Katherine S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Wright
authors.forename: Taylor
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Berens
authors.forename: Adrienne A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Beth
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Barnett
authors.forename: Carlo C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: DiClemente
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000628:therapy; D000434:Alcoholic Beverages / Q000592:standards*; D003625:Data Collection; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010820:Physicians / Q000523:psychology*; D012016:Reference Values; D015813:Substance Abuse Detection / Q000592:standards*; D055815:Young Adult